I will post random tips about out anything you could use. I'll try to aim for at least 1,000, (I'll Try). Post if you tried these tips and want to comment.
1. Wrap you soda can in tin foil to help keep it cold
2. Turn off your lights and It might get cooler, (light bulbs energy emmitt 90% heat and 10% light)
3. Always have a candle in case of powerout
4. Save your useless junk to make Useful junk
5. Never sit on a window sil
6. Look before you sit
7. If a pushpin enters your foot, stay calm and try to yank it out, fast but under control
8. Always have an extra Plan!

This came to me today so I thought I'd share them in this thread:
Some of these came as a surprise to me and are quite useful.

============================================
A sealed envelope - Put in the freezer for a few hours, then slide a
knife under the flap. The envelope can then be resealed.
(hmmmmmm...)

============================================
Use Empty toilet paper roll to store appliance cords. It keeps them
neat and you can write on the roll what appliance it belongs to.

============================================
For icy door steps in freezing temperatures: get warm water and put
Dawn dish washing liquid in it. Pour it all over the steps. They won't
refreeze. (wish I had known this for the last 40 years!)

============================================
To remove old wax from a glass candle holder, put it in the freezer for
a few hours Then take the candle holder out and turn it upside down. The
wax will fall out.

=================================================
Crayon marks on walls? This worked wonderfully! A damp rag, dipped
in baking soda. Comes off with little effort (elbow grease that is!).

============================================
Permane nt marker on appliances/counter tops (like store receipt
BLUE!) rubbing alcohol on paper towel.

=============================================
Whenever I purchase a box of S.O.S Pads, I immediately take a pair of
scissors and cut each pad into halves. After years of having to throw
away rusted and unused and smelly pads, I finally decided that this would
be much more economical. Now a box of S.OS pads last me indefinitely!
In fact, I have noticed that the scissors get 'sharpened'' this way!

=============================================
Blood stains on clothes? Not to worry! Just pour a little hydrogen
peroxide on a cloth and proceed to wipe off every drop of blood. Works
every time! (Now, where to put the body?) LOL

=============================================
Use vertical strokes when washing windows outside and horizontal
for inside windows. This way you can tell which side has the streaks.
Straight vinegar will get outside windows really clean. Don't wash windows
on a sunny day. They will dry too quickly and will probably streak.

============================================
Spray a bit of perfume on the light bulb in any room to create a lovely
light scent in each room when the light is turned on.

============================================
Place fabric softener sheets in dresser drawers and your clothes will
smell freshly washed for weeks to come. You can also do this with towels
and linen.

=============================================
Candles will last a lot longer if placed in the freezer for at least 3
hours prior to burning.

=============================================
To clean artificial flowers, pour some salt into a paper bag and add the
flowers. Shake vigorously as the salt will absorb all the dust and dirt
and leave your artificial flowers looking like new! Works like a charm!

=============================================
To easily remove burnt on food from your skillet, simply add a drop or
two of dish ! soap and enough water to cover bottom of pan, and bring to
a boil on stove top.

==============================================
Spray your TUPPERWARE with nonstick cooking spray before pouring
in tomato based sauces and there won't be any stains.

=============================================
Wrap celery in aluminum foil when putting in the refrigerator and it will
keep for weeks. Also, place a paper towel in a zip lock baggie with the mushrooms, onions, lettuce, etc.

The towel will absorb the moisture.

=============================================
When boiling corn on the cob, add a pinch of sugar to help bring out the
corn's natural sweetness--or, you can cook it in a microwave--3 min. each ear.
.====================================== =======
Cure for headaches: Take a lime, cut it in half, and rub it on your
forehead. The throbbing will go away.

=============================================
To get rid of itch from mosquito bites, try applying soap on the area
and you will experience instant relief.

=============================================
Ants, ants, ants everywhere ... Well, they are said to never cross a chalk
line. So, get your chalk out and draw a line on the floor or wherever ants
tend to march. See for yourself.

============================================
Use air-freshener to clean mirrors.! It does a good job and better still,
leaves a lovely smell to the shine.

============================================
When you get a splinter, reach for the scotch tape before resorting to
tweezers or a needle. Simply put the scotch tape over the splinter, and
then pull it off. Scotch tape removes most splinters painlessly and easily

=====================================
Now look what you can do with Alka Seltzer........
Clean a toilet.
Drop in two Alka Seltzer tablets, wait twenty minutes, brush and flush.
The citric acid and effervescent action clean vitreous China.
============================================
Clean a vase.
To remove a stain from the bottom of a glass vase or cruet, fill with water and drop in two Alka Seltzer tablets.

============================================
Polish jewelry.
Drop two Alka Seltzer tablets into a glass of water and immerse the
jewelry for two minutes.

=============================================
Clean a thermos bottle.
Fill the bottle with water, drop in four Alka Seltzer tablets, and let soak for an hour (or longer, if necessary).

=============================================
Unclog a drain.
Clear the sink drain by dropping three Alka Seltzer tablets down the drain followed by a cup of Heinz White Vinegar. Wait a few minutes, and then run the hot water.

=============================================

SOS pads now come in "junior" size - much smaller, so you can just throw them away after one use.

I've got another veggie keeper tip, from my mother in law. Wrap lettuce in paper towel, and then firmly in plastic. It will keep nicely in the fridge much longer - as long as four weeks. This works best with a leafy lettuce, such as romaine, but even iceberg keeps better this way.

Use your pastry cutter to get the lumps out of cooked ground beef before using it in spaghetti sauce, etc.

Before putting your hands into something sticky, like a bread dough, spray them with cooking spray.

Wash glass jars such as pickle or mayonnaise jars to keep bits of leftovers (half a can of tomato sauce, that kind of thing) in. Your food will be safe from the harmful plastisizers that plastics (even those designed for food storage) emit, and it's a lot easier to see what's inside.

Agony --- Thanks for this tip:

"Use your pastry cutter to get the lumps out of cooked ground beef before using it in spaghetti sauce, etc."

I tried it last night when I cooked up a big pot of ground beef for dog food mix, and the pastry cutter worked great! It made the beef go from big, clumpy lumps to what it should be like.

Kaps

What are SOS pads?

Also the mosquito one works with deoderant as well.

SOS pads are pot scourers filled with soap. Very clever invention but like pot scourers they rust very quickly.

For my job I had to take a food safety course, and found there that they really frown on using your scourer over and over anyway. They recommend washing your dishcloth daily at least (or even more often) and washing or throwing out (depending on type) your scouring pad after every use. Otherwise food scraps and bacteria are just teeming there, ready to transfer to your clean dishes.

Well that makes a lot of sense agony. I also heard about the dishcloths. They say there is so much bacteria on them they need to be washed daily.

To decrease (no pun intended!) your ironing load, when you hang out your shirts and t-shirts, hang them on coathangers and then put them on the line. If the coathangers are made of wire you can squeeze the top bit together so it doesn't fall off, if not then just attempt to peg it to the line.

Hopefully the creases will hang out, and you can put your shirt away straight away, no ironing needed.

I tend to be a bit of a germiphobe in the kitchen. If I need to reuse the old dishcloth that's draped across the faucet, I soak it in alcohol or lysol for a minute or so. Then I don't worry if I use it to clean the counter or scrub the table.

Quote:

---

To decrease your ironing load, when you hang out your shirts and t-shirts, hang them on coat hangers and then put them on the line.

---

I've done this before and it seems to work pretty well. I don't mind ironing so much...but who really has time?

It really is worth while buying a dozen or more of the things (they're cheap) and then even if you don't get to the wash all that often, you always have a clean one.

I hang my shirts on the line on their hangers too, and it does work, especially if it's a bit windy.

To cut down on ironing I put the washing in the tumble dryer for 10 minutes after taking it off the line. (Also dries them if they are not quite dry yet). Then I take the clothes out of the dryer and fold them up. Usually only shirts and cotton pants get ironed. Jeans and t.shirts I fold and put away.

Quote:

---

It really is worth while buying a dozen or more of the things (they're cheap) and then even if you don't get to the wash all that often, you always have a clean one.

---

What a fascinating idea, Agony.

Actually I have many dishcloths, and yes, I do wash them occasionally. But when one's 'creative' children take off with them to wash the car, make a bandana for the cat or go off without folding the load of wash currently in the dryer...yes. I have sometimes found myself washing one from the night before.

Ah, there's the rag bag for that! Do people have rag bags any more? I sure do, it's one of those 'green' shopping bags, a nice big light canvas bag hanging at the top of the cellar stairs, full of rags made from clothes that just can't cut it anymore. I'm sorry my kids don't wear flannel pyjamas anymore - they made the best rags when the knees and bum wore through. I cut off the parts with buttons or zippers or anything else that would be in the way, and snip them up into rags.

Of course people still have rag bags -we always had one when I was a kid. Problem is, when a little girl sees the choice of using a grey, washed out rag for the cat bandana/ Barbie super cape/ swami turban OR one of my good red dishcloths/towels with the white swiss dots...well.
That only happens on occasion, but my main problem is people who don't fold laundry when they say they will.

I'm pretty sure Mum still "recycles" old T-Shirts and Night dresses for dust clothes

Quote:

---

when a little girl sees the choice of using a grey, washed out rag for the cat bandana/ Barbie super cape/ swami turban OR one of my good red dishcloths/towels with the white swiss dots...well.

---

Ah, yes, I remember those days, though at my house it was more "Why do you need to use the only good pair of scissors in the house to cut up cardboard boxes?"

My mum went off at me when I used the sewing scissors for cutting up cardboard. I had never been told that I wasn't allowed to use the sewing scissors for anything other than sewing, so I just grabbed the nearest pair of scissors.

That's another sore spot around here...my children [when they were little] never understood that good paper scissors were for only paper.

I ended up getting them their own patterned blade scissors [ Crayola makes them ] so they'd leave my good pinking shears and paper cutters alone. I also have dress maker's wheel cutters, which are very dangerous. Those I have always kept hidden away.

If one keeps good scissors for only what they were intended to cut, that pair should just about last forever, with an occasional sharpening. Just tell that to kids who LOVE making paper dolls and Origami, though.